Conservatoire de musique de Montréal Symphony Orchestra

by Alain Brunet

The Orchestre symphonique du Conservatoire de musique de Montréal comes to the Maison symphonique with 450 musicians and singers on stage! A crowds on stage, and a crowd in the hall to hear two modern works in full swing: Carmina Burana, by Carl Orf, and Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring. Under the direction of Jacques Lacombe, the Orchestre symphonique du Conservatoire will be joined by the I Musici de Montréal ensemble, the Chœur du Conservatoire, the Joseph-François-Perrault High School Choir and the Montreal Children’s Choir.

ARTISTS AND PROGRAM
Conservatoire de musique de Montréal Symphony Orchestra
450 musicians and singers
Conductor: Jacques Lacombe
Soloists : Aline Kutan (soprano), Antoine Bélanger (tenor) and Alexandre Sylvestre (bass baritone)
Carl Orff: Carmina Burana
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring

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Modern Classical

The MSO and The Gold Rush

by Alain Brunet

Charlie Chaplin’s The Gold Rush is a masterpiece of humour and social critique about the famous Klondike era. This classic silent film is, of course, suitable for projection with live soundtrack in front of a live audience, and this is where the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, under the direction of Timothy Brock, comes into play. The American maestro is a specialist in music composed in the ’20s and ’30s, particularly designed for silent-film accompaniment, and it is precisely for his high skills in that area that he was recruited. Hop in the car… we’re off to the Yukon!

Montreal Symphony Orchestra

Timothy Brock, conductor

Simultaneous projection

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Classical / Classical

(CANCELLED) Leonidas Kavakos

by Alain Brunet

Right from his debut in the ’80s, he’s dazzled the most demanding music lovers on the planet, far beyond the classical sphere. There is no doubt that Leonidas Kavakos has become one of the great living violinists in the known universe. A regular guest of the MSO since the Dutoit era, this time the Greek supervirtuoso will play the Violin Concerto No. 1 by the great Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich. It will be conducted by the young French maestro Lionel Bringuier, also back in Montreal after making a strong impression in 2018.

PROGRAM
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Lionel Bringuier
Violin: Leonidas Kavakos
Esa-Pekka Salonen, Helix
Shostakovich, Violin concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 77
Ravel, Valses nobles et sentimentales
Florent Schmitt, La tragédie de Salomé, Op. 50

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Classical / Romantic

Valery Gergiev conducts MSO

by Alain Brunet

We may frown on his acquaintances with Vladimir Putin’s regime, but Valery Gergiev is nonetheless one of the great maestros of our time. Montreal music lovers have witnessed his genius on a few occasions, including appearances with the Mariinsky Orchestra of Saint-Petersburg, which he conducts with an iron fist, but also with extraordinary refinement and astounding mastery. This time we’ll have the opportunity to see Gergiev at work with the MSO, which suggests a very special relationship with this exceptional maestro. What about Bruckner’s Symphony No. 9? What place will he give to Hungarian virtuoso Kristóf Baráti, guest soloist in Mendelssohn’s indispensable Violin Concerto No. 2? All hopes are high, and this is one of the most eagerly awaited concerts of the season.

ARTISTS AND PROGRAM
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Valery Gergiev
Violin: Kristóf Baráti
Mendelssohn, Violin Concerto pour violon No. 2 in E minor, Op. 64
Bruckner, Symphony No. 9 in D minor, WAB 109

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Modern Classical

Han-Na Chang conducts Shostakovich

by Laurence Gauvin

For its next concert, l’Orchestre Métropolitain welcomes conductor Han-Na Chang to the podium for Beethoven’s famous Violin Concerto and Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony. Formerly a solo cellist, Han-Na Chang has been Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the Trondheim Symfoniorkester, in Norway, since 2017, where she previously served as Principal Guest Conductor from 2013 to 2017. She will share the stage with American soloist Benjamin Beilman, a violinist known throughout the world for his impressive technique and rich sound. Beilman will have the opportunity to perform Beethoven’s Violin Concerto several times as part of the festivities associated with the composer’s 250th birthday, notably in France, Hungary and Poland. Composed in a very short time, the Violin Concerto was premiered on December 23, 1806 by the then well-known violinist Franz Clement. Clement was even the author of the last theme used in the final rondo of the concerto, obviously refined by Beethoven afterwards. The program will conclude with a colossal piece: Shostakovich’s 10th Symphony. First performed on December 17, 1953, only a few months after Stalin’s death, this picturesque work is one of the composer’s best known. He said at the time that his goal was to convey the emotions and passions of the people, at that time strongly oppressed by Stalin’s ruthless regime. In a more traditional four-movement form – in contrast to its five-movement predecessor – this symphony is on a par with Shostakovich’s great works: giant, poignant and virtuosic.

PROGRAM

Conductor : Han-Na Chang

Violin : Benjamin Beilman

Beethoven : Violin Concerto

Shostakovich : Symphony No. 10

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Classical / Contemporary / Romantic

Kent Nagano Conducts Dusapin and Beethoven

by Sarah-Ann Larouche

A joint commission from the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Théâtre de La Monnaie/De Munt, Radio France and the Philharmonie de Paris led French composer Pascal Dusapin to begin composing his symphony for organ and orchestra. For this North American premiere presentation, the work will be performed by organist emeritus Olivier Latry. Also on the program, Chasse royale et orage, taken from Hector Berlioz’s opera Les Troyens, as well as Ludwig van Beethoven’s Pastoral, Symphony No. 6, op. 68 in F major.

PROGRAM
Montreal Symphony Orchestra
Kent Nagano: conductor
Olivier Latry: organ
Berlioz: Chasse royale et orage, from Les Troyens
Pascal Dusapin: Symphonie pour orgue et orchestre
Beethoven: Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68 (Pastoral)

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Classical / Rock

Trio RCM: « L’orgue de Pink Floyd à Zappa »

by Réjean Beaucage

Frank Zappa’s body of work is considerable, and well known, but you won’t find much pipe organ therein, except on the album Uncle Meat, when Don Preston plays “Louie Louie”’s introductory notes on the “Mighty & Majestic Albert Hall Pipe Organ” (dixit FZ). So it’s a nice surprise to discover the Trio RCM, hailing from France, in which percussionist Henri-Charles Caget and guitarist Frédéric Maurin support the work of organist Yves Rechsteiner. The latter is responsible for the basic arrangements of this program, which includes almost a dozen pieces by Zappa, but also interpretations of works by Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Pink Floyd, King Crimson and Pat Metheny. This time, the organ in question is the MSO’s mighty-in-its-own-right Grand Orgue Pierre-Béïque. The earth is gonna shake!

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Classical / Modern Classical

Daniil Trifonov

by Alain Brunet

Praised by international critics, Daniil Trifonov, soon to be 29, is one of the most brilliant pianists of his generation and already shares the summit of Russian piano playing with his colleagues Denis Matsuev and Evgeny Kissin. His last visit to the Maison Symphonique, last year, was marked by troubles that forced the cancellation of his show, followed by a magical performance the next day. Daniil Trifonov returns to Montreal with the aura of a great star. He won the Tchaikovsky Competition in 2011 and third prize at the 16th Frederic Chopin Piano Competition.

PROGRAM
Daniil Trifonov, piano (recital)
Scriabin, 8 Etudes Op. 42
Scriabin, Piano sonata No. 9 in F major Op. 68
Beethoven, Piano sonata No. 31 in A-flat major, Op. 110
Borodine, Petite suite, excerpt (13 min.)
Prokofiev, Piano sonata No. 8 in B-flat major, Op. 84

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